1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of integrated circuits, and more particularly to user-configurable pre-recorded memory (UC-PM).
2. Related Arts
Pre-recorded memory (PM) refers to memory whose contents are recorded before the PM is obtained by a user. It is suitable for publishing, particularly for publishing copyrighted information, e.g. multimedia contents, electronic books, games, software, GPS maps, dictionary. Various types of non-volatile memory (NVM) can be used for PM, including mask-ROM, write-once memory (OTP), and write-many-times memory (WM).
As illustrated in FIG. 1A, a prior-art PM chip (e.g. 22d) holds just one or few pre-recorded files (e.g. file 28d). In order to meet user needs 20 (e.g. including files 28a, 28d, 28e), a large number of PM chips are needed (e.g. 22a, 22d, 22e).
As illustrated in FIG. 1B, with the advancement of semiconductor technology, the PM chip capacity 23 increases dramatically. However, the user needs 20 increase at a much slower rate (thanks to the more efficient compression techniques). As a result, at point A, one or few PM chips can meet the user needs 20.
As illustrated in FIG. 1C, with further improvement in chip capacity 23 (after point A of FIG. 1B), a PM chip 24 can not only meet the needs from an individual user, but also meet the most needs for general users. Three-dimensional memory (3D-M, referring to U.S. Pat. No. 5,835,396) is such a device. Its storage capacity will soon reach 4 GB, which is equivalent to 1,000 songs. This capacity can meet the music needs for most users.
The PM is suitable for storing copyrighted contents. When its storage capacity reaches the level illustrated in FIG. 1C, a PM chip 24 can store a large amount of copyrighted contents. The copyright fees associated with these contents would be huge. If unlimited access is granted, this PM chip would be very expensive, as the copyright fee will far exceed the chip cost. In fact, a user may just want access to some contents (e.g. files 28a, 28d, 28e), but not others (e.g. files 28b, 28c, 28f). To be fair, the user should just pay copyright fees for the contents he is interested in (e.g. files 28a, 28d, 28e). Accordingly, the present invention discloses a user-configurable pre-recorded memory (UC-PM). In a UC-PM, a user can select contents he is interested in, and pay copyright fees accordingly.